The melodious song of the white-rumped shama includes a varied series of flutelike notes and loud whistles, often mimicking other birds. Males are glossy black above and deep chestnut below with a bright white patch above the tail and white under-tail feathers. Females have a similar, but duller color pattern. White-rumped shamas have long been a popular cage bird in South Asia due to their pleasant song. One of the very first audio recordings of a bird song was made in 1889 from a captive white-rumped shama in Germany.